West of Ireland magic!
Reflecting on the University Of Limerick Spring Forward Programme
How can I capture, for the second time, the essence of my time in Doolin? In my reflection on my first trip, I fell in love in Doolin, I pretty much nailed it, and it’s hard to find the words to describe this second literary adventure in Co. Clare. I shall try, though!
There’s something about the light - no, it’s the air, or the bracing thrust of the wind, or the music and thunder of the wild and white-capped Atlantic waves as they fold and roll down in the bay, thrashing against the shores of the shadowy stack of the Aran Islands set against a vivid and turbulent horizon. I don’t know what it is, or was, or forever will be about Doolin in Co. Clare, on the wild and rugged west coast of Ireland, that makes it such an inspirational haven for writers and poets and artists of all persuasions. Professor Sarah Moore Fitzgerald and I remarked upon it when we met in Hotel Doolin last Monday for the start of the University Of Limerick (UL) Spring Forward Creative Writing Programme, and neither of us could pinpoint precisely what it is, other than to say that there is some inherent alchemy to the place that calls out to the artist, and draws their greatest potential from deep within.
I’m not joking, and I’m not exaggerating. Go there and discover it for yourself, and you will find as we did that there is no better location on this good and kindly planet for a writer to be.
So I’m just back from my second outing with UL, for a writing intensive with a smaller group of participants. And this trip, I was there not only as one of the learners and writers, but also as a grateful and enthusiastic tutor and facilitator. A huge honour, I’m sure you’ll agree, especially when the roll of tutors included not only Sarah and multi-award winning author Donal Ryan, but also Fiona Scarlett, Sheila Killian, and Eoin Devereux.
No less impressive was the list of participants, which included many published authors, including well-known Irish crime writer Casey King, and Lauren Mackenzie, who was shortlisted for Newcomer of the Year at the Irish Book Awards in 2023. To be counted among them, and then to deliver a tutorial to the group, from the perspective of a literary journal editor, was an honour I will never forget.
We had splendid food courtesy of Hotel Doolin, were catered to by the wonderful staff who went to great lengths to ensure we were comfortable, happy, and well-fed (a special shout-out to Tracie, who did so much to help us, and to help me in particular), had mighty craic in the bar, and felt so at home that we didn’t want to leave.
The tutorials were incredible, and my mind is spinning on everything I learned. To listen to Sarah Moore Fitzgerald talk about writing is to have one’s mind expanded, one’s vision deepened, one’s creative boundaries pushed past their limits to an entirely new horizon, then beyond it again. And when Sarah teamed up with Donal Ryan for a joint tutorial, it was pure magic!
We were all there to learn from each other, so the tutorials were more interactive sessions than lectures, and were peppered with lots of questions, discussions and sidebars, with a free flow of ideas and concepts in both directions. These discussions continued during our beautiful meals and over drinks, and our evening salons and check-ins solidified our practice of what we had learned.
Wednesday night brought us to our open mic event, where we shared poetry and prose with each other, and the talent on display was breathtaking. There was laughter, there were tears, and there was pure joy in the togetherness of what had already become a tightly knit group of creatives. I will never forget the work I heard that night; it really was top class.
So here I am, back home again, dealing with the mundanities of ordinary life. I mean, I actually had to make my own breakfast this morning, and make my own bed! But I am altered, reinvigorated, still spellbound by that west of Ireland magic, and if I use only one tenth of what I learned in those four days, it will make me twice the writer I was before I went there.
To my fellow participants and tutors, to the wonderful staff of Hotel Doolin, and to Professor Sarah Moore Fitzgerald most of all, this humble wielder of the pen sends you her love and thanks you from the bottom of her heart!